Michael Baird
|hair=Silvery black |eyes=Amber |era=Human-Covenant war |affiliation = UNSC |notable=*Sacrificed himself to destroy a Covenant battle group during the Battle of Algolis. *Weighed 220 lbs. }} Michael Leon Baird, known as Mick was a Sergeant in the UNSC Marine Corps and an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper.Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe, Midnight in the Heart of Midlothian Biography Early life Michael Baird was born on Earth in Edinburgh, Scotland. He often refers to the cold weather he used to enjoy in his childhood. Moments before his death, he is reminded of how he used to fall on his back and make snow angels when he was a child. Treatment Aboard the , Baird received treatment for a form of cancer, a now archaic and easily treatable disease. The procedure was supposed to last only an hour or so, and Baird, who didn't want to miss a jump with his squad, was appeased by Mo Ye, the ship's "smart" AI construct, who said he should be up and ready to jump before they would leave. Baird was actually knocked out for twenty-three hours, and during that time, the Heart of Midlothian, ''was boarded by a Special Operations Covenant boarding party. The Boarding Party As Mo Ye told Baird about the events that occurred while he was unconscious, he asked why she couldn't just self-destruct, as per the Cole Protocol. She told Baird that this boarding party was unlike any other, as they systematically destroyed Mo Ye's systems to prevent her from self-destructing. She also revealed that they had brought aboard a never before encountered Covenant species. In order for Mo Ye to start the self-destruct sequence, Baird had to travel to the control room and manually boot her systems. She was able to tell him this because she had left a small piece of her coding behind to watch over Baird's procedure. Armed with only a fire extinguisher, Baird set out for the control room, but encountered a small group of Covenant, consisting of four Grunts, two Jackals, and one Elite. He snapped the first Jackal's neck by smashing down on its head with his fire extinguisher. He then used the fallen Jackal's Carbine to take out the next. As the Grunts begun to disperse in fear, one accidentally ran into him. As they looked at each other, Baird noticed an energy sword running through the cowering grunt and himself. He looked up and noticed the leading Elite had run him through with his energy sword. As the Elite pulled away, the grunt fell dead and Baird was knocked unconscious. Baird was awoken again by Mo Ye, who gave him four medicines, one that was known to be used by Insurrectionists fighting Spartans. It was known as a suicide drug, slowly destroying the body, but making it totally impervious to pain and damage. Using these drugs, Baird made his way to the control room, where he encountered more of the boarding party, including the leader, who donned a decorative headdress. Baird dropped his weapons and said he would give them the coordinates of Earth if they let him escape. As they begun to raise their weapons at him, the Elite roared at them to stop and communicated with the Engineers on board. The Elite then agreed to let Baird do what he had to do. Death Rather than give the boarding party the coordinates for Earth, Baird proceeds to disable the locks placed upon Mo Ye by the boarding party, giving her control of the ship. The only thing now preventing Mo Ye from fulfilling the Cole Protocol and destroying the ship is the First Law of Robotics, a law hard-coded into every AI that prevents them from harming any human. As long as Baird remains on the ship, she cannot destroy it. Baird then turns to the Elite Commander holding him hostage and punches him square in the face, knocking the Sangheili back. Knowing that he cannot defeat the larger alien in his wounded state, Baird taunts, "''Well, you stupid asshole, think you can do it right this time!?" Angered, the Elite pulls out his energy sword and decapitates Baird. With no remaining humans alive on the ship, Mo Ye is able to fulfill the Cole Protocol. She announces the impending self-destruction of the Midlothian's ''fusion core in a cliche manner, complete with a lengthy countdown timer. Angered, their plan foiled, the Covenant commandos begin to leave the ship. As he departs the bridge of the crippled destroyer, the Elite Commander looks back to Mo Ye in disgust. She looks him straight in the eye and announces, "I'm kidding. There's no need for any countdown whatsoever." She then detonates the ''Heart of Midlothian, vaporising the Elite and the entire Covenant boarding fleet, leaving absolutely nothing but the midnight of space. Appearances *''Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe'' **''Midnight in the Heart of Midlothian'' Sources Category:Halo: Evolutions Category:Deceased characters Category:Humans (Characters) Category:ODST